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Are KIND Bars Good for You?

May 10, 2018   23 Comments

Are KIND Bars good for you? I wish I could say eat them without caveats but it seems that almost none of bars out there are perfect.

Are KIND Bars Good for You?

I keep looking for the best bars – read Are Luna Bars Good for You? and Are NutriGrain Bars Good for You? if you are looking for more advice.

I happen to like KIND because I think the concept is good. They stick together nuts and dried fruit with a little sugar. What could go wrong?

One thing that I have noticed is that KIND has a bunch of different bars. They keep cranking out the flavors so it can be hard to know which ones are the best.

My rules are that the bar should be around 150 calories and have less than 5 grams of added sugar to be considered “good for you”.

My favorites (and ones that I recommend) are the ones that have 5 grams of sugar in them. This is wonderful for any packaged snack. They say “5g of Sugar” on the front like the “Maple Glazed Pecan and Sea Salt”. These are both delicious and an excellent choice.

The “Blueberry Vanilla & Cashew” advertises 40% Less Sugar than the average nutrition bar – which may still mean it has too much sugar. Here is the back of the package:

Do you see how it tells you there are three grams of added sugar? The bar has dried blueberries so you would expect some natural sugar. To me, this bar is a good choice.

All the bars are a bit different in their nutritional makeup. I wish they had ones that were only 150 calories but the lowest I can find is 180 (the blueberry vanilla and cashew). Here are the nutrition facts:

180 calories, 12 g fat, 2 g saturated fat, 19 g carbohydrates, 7 g sugar, 4 g protein, 4.0 g fiber, 20 mg sodium, 6 Freestyle SmartPts

KIND Bars are low in saturated fat but have a lot of fat from the nuts which helps to satisfy you when you are hungry. These are also good portion control because (unlike with a bag with nuts) you will probably eat only one bar.

KIND also features flavors such as Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate.

Does this look like a candy bar? I think that is the point of the marketing here. I wish there were things that said “peanut butter” and “chocolate” and were the best choices.

Alas, as you can see there are 8 grams of added sugar which makes this not as good a choice. This is far better than a Snickers though (if you are looking for a replacement).

This dark chocolate mocha almond bar features only 5 grams of sugar and I think it is a good choice.

I would advise not to get your hopes up about the “chocolate” or “mocha” part of the bar because they not feature prominently in the taste. Mostly this tastes like almonds.

KIND Bars are about $2 each and if I am travelling, I will always have one in my bag to stop me from buying crap on the road or in the airport. They are also a good breakfast for when I have no time (but only the low sugar ones).

Do you like KIND Bars? Which are your favorites?

Other posts you might like:

Are LUNA Bars Healthy? An Unbiased Review

Are LUNA Bars Healthy? An Unbiased Review

LUNA BAR is marketed exclusively to women as a healthy choice. Can a flavor like chocolate cupcake be healthy?

Are NutriGrain Bars Good For You?

Are NutriGrain Bars Good For You?

Are NutriGrain Bars Good For You? These bars by Kellogg’s can be found in the breakfast aisle next to the cereal....

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First 20 Comments: ( See all 23 )

They do have KIND minis, which are 1/2 size, in some flavors. A lot of times I find that the 1/2 size is plenty for a quick snack.

I still think they're candy bars. Yes, they're delicious and there are worse choices. If someone is trying to lose weight or eat a healthy diet, I'd look to other foods. This kind of snack doesn't satisfy me for long.

How about Lara bars? The only flavor I like is the cherry, and I use them for emergencies when out - (trying to stay low/no added sugar, gluten free).

Thus would be s greet time to shake the dust off your recipe for Kitchen Sink bars. So great.

I too like the minis. It is a treat for sure, but doesn't blow the bank. Plus I would never eat a Kind bar and go crazy with a bunch of other things. I tell myself when I have one, "this is an expensive treat that you can have because you are making good choices."

Jennie, the kitchen sink bars sound interesting. Would you share with us? Thanks!

They are a great choice when flying due to the clear plastic wrapper. A bar like a nutragrain will cause the bag to be searched quite often. The foil looks like a metal block in the metal detector.

I recently switched from KIND bars to RX bars. All bars have 12 grams of protein. And while the sugar is on the high side (approx 13 grams) there are no added sugars. All the sweetness comes from the dates and other natural ingredients. And KIND tends to use a lot of soy which I try to stay away from. Check it out - no dairy, no soy, no gluten and always 12 g of protein which keeps me satisfied longer than a KIND bar did at 4-5 g protein. Thanks for your great website!

I really like Lara Bars. There is no added sugar. I buy the minis and I find one satisfies me both hungerwise and emotionally. I usually get the peanutbutter/peanut butter chocolate chip combo box (two flavors in one box!) and they have 100 or 110 calories and 3 grams of protein. Simple ingredients, too - dates, peanuts sea salt OR dates, peanuts, semisweet chocolate chips, and sea salt. You can actually taste the chocolate.

LARABARS! They are the best! NO added sugar and all the flavors are delicious.

Here’s the link to one of my favorite Snack Girl recipes: https://snack-girl.com/snack/fruit-and-nut-bar-recipe/

Hi Snack Girl, we love you here in NYC!

Just wanted to say we eat a lot of Larabars. We did run into a piece of shell once but in proportion to how many we eat, it was ok. This can (and has) happened with other nut products so care is good....We only eat the Kind granola-type bars, which are the flatter larger-looking ones. They do have approx 7 grams of sugar depending on the flavor, but if you eat a piece of fruit and maybe a cheese stick if necessary, it’s pretty great in an emergency. Also wanted to point out that the reason we don’t eat the type of Kind bar that you pictured-which is easier to find in stores, grrr- is because that type has inulin/chicory root. It has been known to create tummy issues. Don’t need that! Also, and maybe most importantly, husband & kids really like ours. Bonus!!

Don't forget that the grams of CARBs also count as SUGAR.

4 grams of sugar per 1 gram of carbs. For example, if you have 25 grams of carbs in any processed food, that's really 100 grams of sugar on top of grams of sugar.

Since I prioritize low Weight Watchers points above food purity, I prefer Quest or Kirkland (Costco) protein bars, all of which have only 2-3g added sugar and 4 FP. I'm satisfied eating only one half, for 2 pts, and keep them in my car for emergency hunger!🌻

The only Kind Bar I like is the Cranberry with Almonds. I have been trying not to eat health bars. Most are too much sugar. I’ve been making power balls at home with medjool dates, nuts, oats. They are super sweet & really fuel my runs.

I'm sure that since I'm on low carb I'm not supposed to eat Kind Bars (or any bars) but sometimes one needs an emergency food supply when travelling. So I pick the bar with the lowest carb (14 g) and lowest sugar (5 g) - and eat only 1/2 a bar. Of interest - Canadian packages don't show the amount of added sugar - just the total.

I go back and forth between Lara bars and Kind bars. They are satisfying and keeps me from eating baked goods. I will try the RX bars that June mentioned.

how do you feel about Lara bars?

Thank you for valuable suggestions.

Unfortunately I have trouble with the whole nuts as I do not have the amount of teeth or the quality of teeth I once had. If they chopped or crushed the nuts it would work better for me.

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